Ilo
—  Village  —
Ilo
Coordinates: 17°38′45.09″S 71°20′43.13″W / 17.6458583°S 71.3453139°W / -17.6458583; -71.3453139
Country	Peru
Region	Moquegua Region
Province	Ilo Province
District	Ilo District
Government
• Mayor (2011-2014)	Jaime Valencia Ampuero
Area
• Total	295.6 km2 (114.1 sq mi)
Elevation	15 m (49 ft)
Population
• Total	57,746
• Density	200/km2 (510/sq mi)
Demonym	Ileños
Website	Official website

Coordinates: 17°38′45.09″S 71°20′43.13″W / 17.6458583°S 71.3453139°W / -17.6458583; -71.3453139 Ilo is a port city in southern Peru, with some 58,000 inhabitants. It is the largest city in the Moquegua Region and capital of the Ilo Province.

History[link]

Before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century, the area was populated by the Chiribaya civilization. The Conquistadores were given land grants by Charles V and brought olives to this area. Olive agriculture was the main crop and source of work until the early 20th century. A small settlement, Pacocha, was established by the seashore where the Rio Osmore flows into the Pacific ocean. High tides in the late 19th century flooded Pacocha and the population moved to Ilo's actual location, adopting its current name. Until the beginning of the 20th century most of the people lived along the banks of the Rio Osmore, whose waters flow sporadically during the summer months. Ilo was a port of call to the ships travelling from the east to the west coast of the United States via Tierra del Fuego. After the building of a pier in the 19th century, international trade flourished in the region. Italians, Chinese, Japanese and Germans settled in Ilo during this time. However, the building of the Transcontinental Rail Road and the Panama Canal caused commercial activities to decrease and mostly steamships transporting goods between Peruvian and Chilean ports remained.

Along with its pier, a railroad was built to connect Ilo to Moquegua. The railroad was named after Calamazo (Spanish pronunciation of Kalamazoo, from the name stamped on the equipment used by the railroad). The main economic activities of the city include fishing and mining. Copper mines originally owned by the Southern Peru Copper Corporation (SPCC) have provided several jobs to the region. SPCC was established by the American Smelting and Mining Corporation in the middle of the 20th century. Many Americans and Peruvians working for SPCC live in an area of Ilo called Ciudad Nueva. The copper smelting plant and a formerly state-owned refinery located 10 kilometers far from the city have contributed to a large amount of air and water pollution in the region. Ilo's industry appeared in the Canadian documentary film The Corporation, as an example of environmental problems caused by industries. Local swimming areas include Pozo de Lisas, Monte Carlo and Puerto Ingles. Bolivia has in the past utilized Ilo as a free gate to the ocean for both recreational and trade purposes.

The Peruvian government has granted a 99 year lease to the government of landlocked Bolivia to develop a port facility, in effect allowing Bolivia to claim to be a "Pacific Ocean nation".^[1] Bolivia lost an earlier claim to a portion of Pacific coast after going to war with Chile in the 19th century.

Temperatures in Ilo range between 18 and 28 degrees Celsius year round. Rain is almost non-existent, as Ilo is located north of the Atacama desert, one of the driest coastal deserts in the world.

The Battle of Pacocha took place near Ilo.

Climate[link]

Pacific Ocean terminal of the Interoceanic Highway[link]

Ilo is the southernmost of the 3 ports which comprise the Peruvian termini of the Interoceanic Highway which is being constructed to link the state of Acre, in the Amazon Basin in Brazil, across the Andes to the Pacific Ocean.

Main sights[link]

The main attraction is the Urban Center whose landmarks are:

• St. Jerome's temple, built in 1871
• Glorieta José Gálvez, built in 1915
• State Pier, built at the end of 19th century
• Punta Coles
• Peruvian Navy Museum
• "El Algarrobal" Museum.

References[link]

Juan Somavía
9th Director-General of the International Labour Organization
Incumbent
Assumed office March 4, 1999
Preceded by	Michel Hansenne
Succeeded by	Guy Ryder (Elect)
Personal details
Born	(1941-04-21) April 21, 1941 (age 71) Chile
Nationality	Chilean
Spouse(s)	Adriana Santa Cruz

Juan Somavía (born April 11, 1941) is the current Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO). He was elected to serve as the ninth Director-General of the ILO by the Governing Body ^[1] on 23 March 1998.

Term as Director-General[link]

His five-year term of office began on 4 March 1999, when he became the first representative from the Southern hemisphere to head the organization. In March 2003, Somavia was re-elected for a second five-year term. He was re-elected for a third five-year term in November 2008.

Since taking office in 1999, Somavía has taken up the challenge that the rapidly changing economy presents to the ILO. In 1999, he submitted his Decent Work Agenda ^[2] to the International Labour Conference, which was subsequently endorsed by the Governing Body and the Conference.

The work of the Office has been reorganized around four strategic objectives that make it possible to establish targets and indicators to measure progress and provide the basis of accountability: employment creation,^[3] rights at work,^[4] social protection ^[5] and social dialogue.^[6]

Background[link]

An attorney by profession, Somavía has had a long and distinguished career in civil and international affairs. His wide experience in all areas of public life - as a diplomat and academic - and his involvement in social development, business and civil organizations have all helped shape his vision of the need to secure decent work for women and men throughout the world.

The following is a list of the positions he held in the United Nations and other inter-governmental organizations before joining the ILO:

• • 1990-99: Permanent Representative of Chile to the United Nations in New York;
  • 1993-94, 1998-99: President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council;
  • 1996-97: Representative of Chile on the United Nations Security Council, including President of the Security Council in April 1996 and October 1997;
  • 1993-95: Chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the World Summit for Social Development, Copenhagen .;^[7]
  • 1991-92: Chairman of the Social Committee of the United Nations Economic and Social Council;
  • 1990-91: Chairman of the United Nations Third Committee on Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Affairs;
  • 1970-73: Executive Secretary of the Latin American Free Trade Association in Chile; Ambassador of Chile to the Andean Group; Member and Chairman of the Governing Body of the Andean Group;
  • 1968-70: Ambassador and Adviser to the Foreign Minister of Chile on Economic and Social Affairs, responsible for multilateral issues including the ILO.

Somavía began his career as an academic. From 1967-68, he was lecturer on economic and social issues for GATT's trade policy courses in Geneva. In 1971, he was appointed Professor of International Economic and Social Affairs in the Department of Political Sciences at the Catholic University of Chile, where he highlighted the ILO and its tripartite structure as a case study in international cooperation. Between 1976 and 1990, he was Founder, Executive Director and President of the Latin American Institute of Transnational Studies (ILET), during which time he undertook a number of studies on trade union and social movements in Mexico City and Santiago. From 1996-99, Mr. Somavia was Chairman of the Board of the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). Throughout his career, he has written and lectured widely on trade issues and labour and human rights and holds numerous citations and awards for his work in the areas of peace, human rights and social development.

Somavía has always shown a strong interest in development cooperation and economic and social affairs. During the late 1960s, while working in General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), he promoted the participation of developing countries in the Kennedy Round. From 1970-73, Mr. Somavía served as Member and Chairman of the Board of the Andean Development Corporation in Caracas and worked intensively in favour of regional integration. He was also a Member of the Executive Committee of the International Foundation for Development Alternatives in Nyon, Switzerland from 1977–95 and has been on the Advisory Committee of Development Dialogue (published by the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation) for more than 25 years.

Somavía participated actively in the restoration of democracy in Chile. Not only was he President of the International Commission of the Democratic Coalition in Chile but also founder and Secretary-General of the South American Peace Commission (1986–90). For his contribution to peace and human rights, he was awarded the "Leonides Proano Peace Prize" by the Latin American Human Rights Association.

Somavía has been involved in business, financial and civil society organizations for many years. As Executive Secretary of the Chilean-Argentinian Chamber of Commerce he strengthened ties between the business communities in both countries. From 1976-82, Mr. Somavia was Coordinator of the Third World Forum, a network of African, Asian, Latin American and Caribbean social actors. He was also a member of the Board and Vice President for Latin America of the Third World News Agency, Inter Press Service (1976–89) based in Rome. Together with Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Nobel Prize winner, Mr. Somavia represented Latin America as a Member of the MacBride Commission on International Communications (1980–82). Finally, he has served as Chairman of the United Nations Committee of Parliamentarians for Global Action.

Born on 21 April 1941, Somavía's early schooling took place in Chile, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United States and Ecuador. In 1958, he returned to his country to read law at the Catholic University of Chile. After graduating in 1962, he continued higher studies in economic development at the School of Law and Economics at the University of Paris. Somavia was made Laurea Honoris Causa in political sciences by the University of Turin in November 2001 and awarded a Doctorate Honoris Causa by the University of Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne in May 2003.

He is married to Adriana Santa Cruz and they have two children.

Footnotes[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Juan Somavía

• ILO website:
  • Director-General's office
  • ILO's Home Page
  • International Labour Conference Home Page
  • ILO Governing Body Home Page
  • ILO Statistics and Database Home Page
  • International Institute for Labour Studies
  • International Training Centre of the ILO - Turin, Italy